Beverage container with easy label removal

ABSTRACT

A beverage container or plastic bottle that allows easy label or film removal is provided. The beverage container includes a shoulder portion, a base portion, a body portion extending between the shoulder portion and the base portion, the body portion having a reinforcing concave rib circumferentially formed on the body portion, the concave rib having an asymmetrical shape at a vertical cross-section of the concave rib, and a heat shrink film disposed over the body portion, the heat shrink film having an edge disposed over the concave rib.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a plastic beverage container or bottlefor storing liquids such as refreshing beverages or carbonatedbeverages. In particular, the invention is directed to a plasticbeverage container or bottle with a heat shrink film that can be easilypeeled off or removed.

BACKGROUND

Plastic bottles, such as PET bottles, are widely known as beveragecontainers. This type of bottle is provided with, from the top of thebottle, a mouth portion, a shoulder portion, a body portion, and a baseportion. A concave rib is often formed about the entire circumference ofthe body portion to provide a lateral strength to the bottle. Typically,upper and lower concave ribs are formed in the body of small bottleswith not more than 500 ml, and an additional concave rib is often formedin the middle section of large bottles above 1500 ml.

Bottles provided to consumers are often covered with a film or ashrink-wrap label printed with, for example, a brand name. This labelhas heat shrink properties, and after the label is wrapped around theouter surface of the bottle, it tightly fits around the outer surface ofthe bottle when heated.

Labels may cover only a part of the bottle body, the entire body, a partof the shoulder portion, or a part of the base portion. For example,Japanese Published Patent Application 2003-335343 discloses a bottlewith a label, and an upper edge and a lower edge of the label extendover upper and lower concave ribs to the shoulder portion and the baseportion of the bottle. By wrapping the upper edge of the label aroundthe conical shoulder portion, it is more difficult for the label to moveor peel off compared to just wrapping it around a flat surface of thecylindrical body.

Recently, recycling of bottles has been widely practiced, and as aresult, labels are often provided with perforations so that a consumercan easily remove the label from the bottle after consuming the beveragein the bottle. Efforts have been made to facilitate peeling of labels.(See, for example, Japanese Published Patent Applications 2002-104419,2006-347598, and H5-16634). Also, a notch may be provided in a label sothat a consumer can peel it off.

To draw the attention of consumers in stores, such as supermarkets, manybottles have been provided with unique cross-sectional shapes orprofiles. However, a decorative design has generally not been formed onthe body portion, the shoulder portion, or the base portion because anydecorative design formed on those portions would be covered by a labeldefeating the purpose of the design.

The label location can be adjusted to emphasize the design. However, ifthe upper edge of the label were located on a flat surface of theshoulder portion, the label would easily move and slip off the bottle.On the other hand, if the upper edge of the label is located withinconcave ribs, the label may not move. However, such an arrangement wouldmake it difficult for consumers to insert their fingernails in theconcave ribs and to pull off the upper edge of the label. Consequently,peeling off the label becomes more difficult.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a beveragecontainer or bottle that addresses the aforementioned problems. In oneaspect, a beverage container or bottle is provided to enhance the designof the shoulder and base portions. It is another object of the inventionto provide a beverage container or plastic bottle with a label or filmthat can be easily removed while maintaining the strength of the bottle.A beverage container includes a shoulder portion, a base portion, a bodyportion extending between the shoulder portion and the base portion, thebody portion having a reinforcing concave rib circumferentially formedon the body portion, the concave rib having an asymmetrical shape at avertical cross-section of the concave rib, and a heat shrink filmdisposed over the body portion, the heat shrink film having an edgedisposed over the concave rib.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth inpart in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious fromthe description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Theobjects and advantages of the invention will be realized and attained bymeans of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in theappended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing generaldescription and the following detailed description are exemplary andexplanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate several embodiments of theinvention and together with the description, serve to explain theprinciples of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a beverage container or bottle accordingto an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the beverage container in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the beverage container in FIG. 1 with a heatshrink film;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a region IV in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is another enlarged view of a region IV in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of a region VI in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a comparative example of a beveragecontainer with a finger peeling a heat shrink film;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the beverage container with a fingerpeeling a heat shrink film according to one embodiment of the invention;and

FIG. 9 is a front view of the beverage container according to anotherembodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the present exemplaryembodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numberswill be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

A beverage container or a bottle has a shoulder portion, a base portion,a body portion that extends vertically between the shoulder portion andthe base portion, a heat shrink film that covers the body, and areinforcing concave rib circumferentially formed on the body portion,the concave rib having an asymmetrical shape at a vertical cross-sectionof the concave rib. A heat shrink film is disposed over the bodyportion, and the heat shrink film has an edge disposed over the concaverib. The bottle may be provided with one or more concave ribs.

Since one edge of the film is within the concave rib, at least one ofthe shoulder portion and the base portion is not covered by film.Therefore, a decorative design can be provided to the uncovered portionenhancing the bottle design. The reinforcing effect of the concave ribis expected to be impaired if the ease of peeling is maintained and thevertical cross-sectional shape of the concave rib is symmetrical in thevertical direction. However, since the concave rib has a verticallyasymmetrical cross-sectional shape in this embodiment, the concave ribmaintains the strength of the bottle and facilitates insertion of afingernail by a consumer in the rib. This allows easy peeling of thefilm at the edge within the concave rib and provides sufficient bottlestrength.

In one preferred embodiment, the concave rib has a maximum depth sectionsituated on the innermost side of the bottle at the concave rib, anupper side surface that extends from the top ridge toward the maximumdepth section, and a lower side surface that extends from the bottomridge toward the maximum depth section. One of the upper side surfaceand the lower side surface may have a more gradual slope than the otherone.

By forming a surface of the rib in this manner, a consumer can easilyinsert a fingernail within the concave rib and slide their fingernail topull one edge of the film. This allows easy peeling of the film from oneedge within the concave rib. Furthermore, by providing a surface that isless gradually sloped then the other one, the reinforcing effect of theconcave rib can be maintained.

In another preferred embodiment, a distance from the maximum depth to aflat portion of the bottle is longer for one of the upper side surfaceor the lower side surface than the other.

In another embodiment, one edge of the heat shrink film may be disposedat the surface of either the upper side surface or the lower sidesurface that is gradually sloped or at the maximum depth section. Such astructure enables a consumer to pull one edge of the film with afingernail easily to peel off the film.

In another embodiment, the concave rib may be provided closer to theshoulder portion than to the base portion with the upper edge of theheat shrink film disposed at the lower side surface. In this structure,the strength of the concave rib near the shoulder portion can beelevated, and a consumer can pull the upper edge of the film with afingernail.

Preferably, the lower side surface and the maximum depth section areconnected by an arc that has a center of curvature outside of the bottleso that a step between the lower side surface and the maximum depthsection is gradual. A consumer can peel the film easily even if theupper edge of the heat shrink film is in the arc section between thelower side surface and the maximum depth section.

In another embodiment, the concave rib may be located near the baseportion than the shoulder portion, and the lower edge of the heat shrinkfilm may be located at the upper side surface. In this case, thestrength in the concave rib near the base portion can be improved, andeach consumer can pull the lower edge of the film with a fingernail.

In one embodiment, the upper side surface and the lower side surface maybe flat without curves. The reinforcing effect of the concave ribs canbe elevated in this structure. Also, a second concave rib forreinforcement may be circumferentially formed on the body of the plasticbottle. The other edge of the heat shrink film may be situated withinthis second concave rib.

In another exemplary embodiment, moreover, at least one of the shoulderportion or the base portion may be provided with a decorative designformed away from the heat shrink film. The design of the shoulderportion or the base portion can be enhanced.

Also, the heat shrink film may have perforations formed in the verticaldirection, so that a consumer can peel the heat shrink film along theperforations.

In another embodiment, a plastic bottle has a shoulder portion, a baseportion, a body portion, a heat shrink film, and a concave rib asdescribed above. In this bottle, one edge of the heat shrink film may besituated within the concave rib and have perforations that extend fromone edge. The concave rib has a structure that permits a consumer toinsert a fingernail in the rib and peel the heat shrink film along theperforations by tearing at one edge of the heat shrink film.

Embodiments of the plastic bottle are explained below with reference tothe appended drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, a beverage container or bottle 1 (“bottle”hereinafter) may be made of a variety of thermoplastic resins such aspolyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, etc., as themain material, and it may be formed by various molding methods includingblow molding, injection blow molding, biaxial stretching molding, etc.For example, bottle 1 having a round cross-sectional shape may have aheight of approximately 207 mm, a maximum diameter of approximately 60mm, and a volume of approximately 450 ml.

Molded bottle 1 may be cleaned or sterilized by hot-water sterilization,chlorine-sterilization, etc., and then filled with a beverage. Such abeverage includes noncarbonated beverages such as tea, green tea, oolongtea, black tea, coffee, or juice. The noncarbonated beverages can befilled in bottle 1 using a well-known sterile filling equipment such ashot pack filling (comparatively high temperatures: for example, 80° C.)or aseptic filling (room temperature: for example, 15 to 35° C.).

Since the pressure within a bottle is usually negative (that is, lowerthan the ambient pressure) when using noncarbonated beverages, thebottle has low strength, and ribs must be formed in the bottle toprovide necessary strength. Bottle 1 in this embodiment is suitable tobe filled with noncarbonated beverages because it has a reinforcing rib(concave ribs 41, 42 as discussed below). Bottle 1 can also be filledwith carbonated beverages. The bottle is not restricted for beverages,and it may be used to contain food items such as sauces or sweet sake(mirin).

After the bottle is filled with a beverage, mouth 2 of bottle 1 issealed with a cap (not illustrated in the figure) and the interior ofbottle 1 is sealed. Next, the bottle 1 is wrapped with film 100 (seeFIG. 3) on which a brand name or ingredients may be printed, and it isthen marketed. Film 100 may be a label.

FIG. 2 is a front view of bottle 1. FIG. 3 is a front view of bottle 1with heat shrink film 100. In FIGS. 2 and 3, decorative designs 500 and510 are not provided in the bottle.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, bottle 1 has mouth 2, shoulder portion 3,body portion 4, and base portion 5 from the top along the central axisY-Y. These portions (2-5) may be integrally formed and provides a wallof the bottle that can hold a beverage. Two concave ribs 41, 42 mutuallyseparated vertically and a plurality of panels 43 are formed on bodyportion 4.

In this embodiment, film 100 is a heat shrink film. Film 100 may beformed in a cylindrical shape by connecting both rectangular edges with10 to 80 μm thickness. Film 100 that may be made of polyester resin,polystyrene resin, polypropylene resin, or polyvinyl chloride resin ismolded by, for example, uniaxial stretching. Film 100 has heat shrinkproperties in the circumferential direction as a result of cylindricalshaping of film 100 with a primary stretching direction in thecircumferential direction.

To cover body portion 4 with film 100, film 100 is placed so that theback of the film faces the bottle, and steam is applied to film 100.Film 100 shrinks in the circumferential direction as a result of theexposure to steam, and it tightly wraps around the outer circumferentialsurface of body portion 4 other than panels 43. In this state, upperedge 101 of film 100 is located within concave rib 41, and lower edge102 of film 100 is located within concave rib 42.

Two perforations 103 may be formed in film 100 parallel to the centralaxis Y-Y. Perforations 103 forms a line from upper edge 101 to loweredge 102. Accordingly, both edges of perforations 103 are situatedwithin concave rib 41, 42. A consumer can easily separate film 100 frombottle 1 by cutting or peeling film 100 along perforations 103.

In another embodiment, perforations 103 may extend along the directionintersecting the central axis Y-Y, specifically, obliquely in thevertical direction. Furthermore, a tab may be provided so that aconsumer can easily hold the tab to peel film 100. In that case, the tabmay be provided in concave rib 41 or 42.

Some terms used in the specification are defined as follows. Centralaxis Y-Y direction refers to the vertical direction of bottle 1. Heightof bottle 1 refers to the length of bottle 1 along the central axis Y-Ydirection. Vertical cross-section means a cross-section of bottle 1 at aflat plane that is along the central axis Y-Y. Horizontal cross-sectionmeans a cross-section of bottle 1 at a flat plane that crosses thecentral axis Y-Y. Radial direction means a radial direction of a circlewith its center at an arbitrary point on the central axis Y-Y.Circumferential direction means a circumferential direction along acontour of the horizontal cross-section.

Each part of bottle 1 is explained below.

Mouth 2 is situated at the upper edge of bottle 1 and forms the sectionof bottle 1 with the smallest diameter. Mouth 2 that opens at the upperedge functions as a port for filling the bottle with a beverage and forpouring or drinking the beverage out of the bottle. Mouth 2 may besealed with a cap (not illustrated).

Shoulder portion 3 includes dome section 31 and cylindrical section 32.Dome section 31 is a section that connects to the bottom of mouth 2 andhas a truncated circular conical shape in the embodiment. Cylindricalsection 32 is a section that connects to the lower edge of dome section31. Concave rib 41 is connected to the lower edge of cylindrical section32 and concave rib 41 forms the boundary between shoulder portion 3 andbody portion 4.

Base portion 5 has bottom wall 51 and circumferential wall 52. Bottomwall 51 forms a surface that bottle 1 stands on and has an upwarddepression to provide sufficient bottle strength. Circumferential wall52 is a section that connects to the rim of bottom wall 51 and has acylindrical shape. Concave rib 42 connects to the upper edge ofcircumferential wall 52, and concave rib 42 is formed at the boundarybetween base portion 5 and body portion 4.

While concave ribs 41 and 42 are formed at the boundaries of shoulderportion 3, body portion 4, and base portion 5, body portion 4 may haveconcave rib 41 located on the upper side surface and concave rib 42located on the lower side surface. In short, at least one of cylindricalsection 32 and circumferential wall 52 may constitute a part of bodyportion 4. Furthermore, cylindrical section 32 and circumferential wall52 may be the maximum diameter sections of bottle 1.

Body 4 extends in the vertical direction between shoulder portion 3 andbase portion 5. It may have a height of approximately 110 mm, forexample. Panels 43 in body portion 4 may provide support for a decreasein the internal pressure of the bottle after being filled with abeverage and prevent deformation of bottle 1. Panels 43 may be providedwith various shapes, and in this embodiment, they have an ellipticalshape. Panels 43 extend between concave rib 41 and concave rib 42 andare situated so that their upper and lower edges are separated fromconcave rib 41 and concave rib 42.

In this embodiment, eight panels 43 are formed with a uniform distancein the circumferential direction of body portion 4. Each panel 43 isconcavely formed on bottle 1. The surface between the panels 43 is onthe same plane as the surface between each panel 43 and concave ribs 41,42. The outer surface of body portion 4 other than concave ribs 41, 42and panels 43 is formed at a uniform level surface 45. Level surface 45extends parallel to the central axis Y-Y and the contour is located on acircle with its centers on the central axis Y-Y.

Concave ribs 41, 42 that are formed along the circumferential directionin body portion 4 are curved inwardly, toward the inside in the radialdirection of bottle 1. Concave rib 41 reinforces the strength of thebottle on the side of shoulder portion 3, and concave rib 42 reinforcesthe strength of the bottle on the side of base portion 5. In thisembodiment, the reinforcement by concave ribs 41, 42 primarily refers tothe lateral rigidity of bottle 1.

The vertical cross-section of concave rib 42 has a vertically symmetric,semi-circular shape. The upper edge or ridge and the lower edge or ridgeof concave rib 42 are rounded so that the upper edge and the lower edgesmoothly connect to level surface 45 and the circumferential wall 52,respectively. The height of concave rib 42 (length in the direction ofthe central axis Y-Y) may be approximately 10 mm, for example.

Concave rib 41 is explained in detail below in reference to FIGS. 4 to6. The vertical cross-section of concave rib 41 differs from that ofconcave rib 42 so that they are vertically asymmetrical. The outersurface of concave rib 41 has central surface 61, upper side surface 62,and lower side surface 63. Central surface 61 is a surface located onthe innermost side in concave rib 41. Central surface 61 corresponds tothe maximum depth section of concave rib 41. The maximum depthdimensions may be in the range of 0.5 mm to not more than 5 mm, andpreferably it is 2 mm. Upper side surface 62 is a flat surface thatextends upwardly from central surface 61 and connects to the outersurface of cylindrical section 32. Lower side surface 63 is a flatsurface that extends downwardly from central surface 61 and connects tolevel surface 45.

The edges of central surface 61, upper side surface 62, and lower sidesurface 63 are rounded. Central surface 61 and upper side surface 62form an arc with a radius of curvature of 2 mm (R2), as shown in FIG. 4,while central surface 61 and lower side surface 63 form an arc with aradius of curvature of 10 mm (R10) so as to smoothly connect. The centerof curvature of these arcs may be located outside of the bottle. On theother hand, the outer surfaces of upper side surface 62 and cylindricalsection 32 may form an arc having a radius of curvature of 2 mm (R2)while lower side surface 63 and level surface 45 may form an arc havinga radius of curvature of 10 mm (R10) so as to smoothly connect. Thecenter of curvature of these arcs is located inside of the bottle. Thefour radii of curvature can be varied (for example, in the range of 2 mmto 20 mm); however, the radius of curvature associated with lower sidesurface 63 should be larger than the radius of curvature associated withupper side surface 62.

As shown in FIG. 5, central surface 61 extends along line X-X parallelto central axis Y-Y. Lower side surface 63 gradually extends beyondupper side surface 62. Inclination angle or slope a at lower sidesurface 63 is smaller than the inclination angle or slope β at upperside surface 62. In this embodiment, inclination angles α and βrepresent, respectively, the angles between extensions of lower sidesurface 63 and upper side surface 62 relative to the line X-X.Inclination angle α should be sufficient to permit smooth insertion of afingernail in concave rib 41, and preferably it is in the range of 5degrees to 45 degrees, and more preferably 20 degrees.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, lower side surface 63 is longer thanupper side surface 62 in the line X-X direction. Length L3 of lower sidesurface 63 in the line X-X direction is greater than length L2 of upperside surface 62 in the line X-X direction. In other words, the distancefrom central surface 61 to the flat surface of lower side surface 63 islonger than to the flat surface of upper side surface 62. The flatsurface of bottle 1 is level surface 45 in the case of lower sidesurface 63 and is the outer surface of cylindrical section 32 in thecase of upper side surface 62. In one embodiment, length L3 is in therange of 2 mm to 14 mm, and length L2 is in the range of 1 mm to 5 mm.Preferably, length L3 is about 5 mm, and length L2 is about 2.5 mm. Thetotal height of concave rib 41 adding length L1 of central surface 61 tolengths L2 and L3 may range between 5 mm and 15 mm, and preferably it isabout 12 mm.

FIG. 6 illustrates concave rib 41 and upper edge 101 of film 100. Asdescribed above, upper edge 101 is located within concave rib 41, and itis located at region S1, which extends from center surface 61, which isthe maximum depth section, to level surface 45 of body portion 4.Preferably, the upper edge 101 is located at region S2, which is asloped surface on lower side surface 63. Having upper edge 101 at regionS1 or S2 in concave rib 41 prevents slipping of upper edge 101 andprovides easy access to upper edge 101 by a consumer.

As described above, a consumer can peel film 100 by hooking a fingernailon upper edge 101 and pulling it downward. It would be difficult to peelthe film if upper edge 101 is located on upper side surface 62 inconcave rib 41. However, if upper edge 101 is located at region S1, thefilm can be peeled easily, and it may more easily peeled if the edge islocated in region S2. In a preferred embodiment, upper edge 101 islocated at the center in the vertical direction on lower side surface63, as shown in FIG. 6. However, since film 100 covers the bottle byheat shrinking, upper edge 101 may be located on center surface 61.

The technical effect of bottle 1 will be explained in reference to FIGS.7 and 8. FIG. 7 shows a bottle as a comparative example. Concave rib 410of the bottle corresponds to concave rib 41 in the embodiment of thepresent invention and has a similar configuration to concave rib 42 inthe embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, a finger must be placed at an acuteangle when a consumer tries to hook fingernail 200 on upper edge 101. Inaddition, even if the fingernail 200 is placed on upper edge 101,fingernail 200 strikes the upper side surface of concave rib 410, makingit difficult for the consumer to pull down upper edge 101.

On the contrary, in an exemplary embodiment of the present inventionshown in FIG. 8, fingernail 200 can hook upper edge 101 without placinga finger at an acute angle on bottle 1. The consumer can then easilypeel film 100 along perforations 103 by pulling upper edge 101downwardly using the tip of fingernail 200 without striking or onlylightly placing fingernail 200 against the upper side surface of concaverib 41. That is because the vertical cross-section of concave rib 41 isconfigured to facilitate peeling of the film by allowing fingernail 200in concave rib 41.

Peeling of the film may be facilitated by forming the angle of thevertical walls of the concave ribs more gradually than the angle shownin FIG. 7. However, such a configuration of a bottle reduces reinforcingeffect of the concave ribs, and it becomes difficult to maintain thestrength of the bottle.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, however, the vertical cross-sectionof concave rib 41 is vertically asymmetrical, and the reinforcing effectof concave rib 41 is maintained by upper side surface 62 while allowingeasy peeling of film 100 in one direction (downward direction in theembodiment) by lower side surface 63.

In addition, if a crease is formed in concave rib 41, upper edge 101becomes tightly wrapped at the crease when the film is heat shrunk,making it difficult to peel.

In this embodiment, individual arcs (R2, R10) are formed in concave rib41, and film 100 can be easily peeled even if upper edge 101 is tightlywrapped around the arc between central surface 61 and lower side surface63.

Furthermore, the design of shoulder portion 3 can be enhanced since film100 does not reach shoulder portion 3. For example, as shown in FIG. 1,a diamond-cut decorative design 500 can be formed on cylindrical section32. In addition, upper edge 101 of film 100 does not reach base portion5, and the design of base portion 5 can also be improved by formingdiamond-cut decorative design 510.

It is not necessary to dispose film 100 at shoulder portion 3 or at baseportion 5 because film 100 can cover only body portion 4, and as aresult, film 100 can be shortened and the cost of film 100 can bereduced. Also, slipping of film 100 can be prevented because upper edge101 is located in concave rib 41.

In another embodiment, the vertical cross-section of concave rib 41 inbottle 1 may be modified. For example, upper side surface 62 may beextended with a more gradual slope than lower side surface 63, or lengthL2 of upper side surface 62 may be extended longer than length L3 oflower side surface 63. In other words, configuration of the concave rib41 may be inverted from the embodiment described above.

Also, it may not be necessary to place lower edge 102 of film 100 inconcave rib 42. In addition, concave rib 42 may have the same shape asconcave rib 41, in which case both edges of film 100 could be situatedwithin both concave ribs 41, 42. When concave rib 42 and concave rib 41have the same shape, the vertical cross-section of concave rib 42 mayhave a vertically inverted configuration from the vertical cross-sectionof concave rib 41, as shown in FIG. 9. Film 100 can be easily peeledupwardly using lower edge by placing lower edge of film 100 on upperside surface 620 or at center surface 610 in concave rib 42.

Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled inthe art from consideration of the specification and practice of theinvention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification andexamples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spiritof the invention being indicated by the following claims.

1. A beverage container, comprising: a shoulder portion; a base portion;a body portion extending between the shoulder portion and the baseportion, the body portion having a reinforcing concave ribcircumferentially formed on the body portion, the concave rib having anasymmetrical shape at a vertical cross-section of the concave rib; and aheat shrink film disposed over the body portion, the heat shrink filmhaving an edge disposed over the concave rib.
 2. The beverage containerof claim 1, wherein the concave rib has a maximum depth section at theinnermost location of the body portion, an upper side surface extendingfrom a top ridge of the concave rib toward the maximum depth section,and a lower side surface extending from a bottom ridge toward themaximum depth section, wherein one of the upper side surface and thelower side surface has a more gradual slope than the other one of theupper side surface and the lower side surface.
 3. The beverage containerof claim 2, wherein the edge of the heat shrink film is disposed overthe more gradual slope or the maximum depth section.
 4. The plasticbottle of claim 2, wherein the concave rib is formed more proximate tothe shoulder portion than to the base portion, and the edge of the heatshrink film is an upper edge disposed over the lower side surface of theconcave rib.
 5. The beverage container of claim 4, wherein the lowerside surface and the maximum depth section are connected by an arc witha radius of curvature located outside of the container.
 6. The beveragecontainer of claim 2, wherein the concave rib is formed more proximateto the base portion than to the shoulder portion, and the edge of theheat shrink film is a lower edge disposed over the upper side surface ofthe concave rib.
 7. The beverage container of claim 2, wherein the upperside surface and the lower side surface are flat surfaces.
 8. Thebeverage container of claim 1, wherein at least one of the shoulderportion and the base portion has a decorative design formed at aposition away from the heat shrink film.
 9. The beverage container ofclaim 1, wherein the heat shrink film has perforations formed along avertical direction.
 10. A beverage container, comprising: a shoulderportion; a base portion; a body portion extending between the shoulderportion and the base portion, the body portion having a reinforcingconcave rib circumferentially formed on the body portion; and a heatshrink film disposed over the body portion, the heat shrink film havingan edge disposed over the concave rib and perforations extending fromthe edge, wherein the concave rib allows a fingernail to be insertedtherein and peel the heat shrink film along the perforations by thefingernail.